First race

Last race

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a motor racing circuit and oval speedway complex in Indiana, United States, which has held the Indianapolis 500 since 1911 (11 of which, 1950–60, were rounds of the Formula One World Championship) and the United States Grand Prix from 2000 to 2007.

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The oval circuit, used from 1950 to 1960 in F1 and to this day in Indycar.

The layout of the Indianapolis 500 is an oval track, with two main straights and four corners. The track runs in the opposite direction (counterclockwise) to the infield circuit configuration. It is precisely 2.5 miles (4.023 kilometres) long, and is still used for the Indianapolis 500.

The two long straights are exactly 5⁄8 miles, the short straights are exactly 1⁄8 miles and the corners are 1⁄4 miles. The corners are banked at 9.2 degrees. The four corners are identical and the straights are exactly parallel.

The Grand Prix circuit ran clockwise, unlike the oval circuit, and spanned around half the oval circuit, using the same pit area as the oval track. The first two corners are at 90° angles, the first a right-hander, then a left-hander. Three right-hand bends follow, the first long, the second tightens, the third fast. Turn 6 is a long left-hander that lead directly into Turn 7. The back straight followed, before a 90° turn which lead into two, slow, hairpins, the first slightly tighter than the second (the hairpins were colloquially known as "Mickey" and "Mouse"). At the next corner, Turn 11, the cars started building up speed as the cars rejoined the oval track at turn 12. Turn 13, the only banked corner on the F1 calendar at the time, was taken flat out and this lead to the start/finish line.

The banked corner, Turn 13 was the source of the problems that arose at the 2005 United States Grand Prix, because the Michelin tyres provided were not able to survive ten laps unless there was a reduction of speed on the corner, as Ralf Schumacher's accident testified. Bridgestone had no problems with the banked corner, as they also provided tires for the Indy Car series, and routinely made tires designed for banked ovals. Eventually, the fourteen Michelin runners chose to withdraw after the formation lap in the interests of safety, leaving the remaining six Bridgestone runners to race it out. The corner that was Turn 13 has since been replaced from the Indianapolis road course by a short infield loop.